Venerable U.S. retailer Lord & Taylor plans to liquidate inventory in its 38 department stores once restrictions to curb the spread of coronavirus are lifted as it braces for a bankruptcy process from which it does not expect to emerge, Reuters reported. Lord & Taylor’s preparations to liquidate its inventory as soon as its stores reopen offer a window into the grim future of a high-profile retailer — a storied department store chain founded in 1826 and billed as the oldest in the United States — that does not expect to survive the pandemic’s economic fallout. Retailers that pursue a liquidation hold “going out of business” sales in order to generate cash, and their stores often become magnets for consumers looking for bargains. Lord & Taylor is holding off on a bankruptcy filing and subsequent liquidation until it can reopen its stores to attract those shoppers.
